


Danganronpa - Welcome to the Despair Hospital!

by yonyonyon



Category: Dangan Ronpa, Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-12
Updated: 2015-02-12
Packaged: 2018-03-12 02:18:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3339908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yonyonyon/pseuds/yonyonyon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alternate story about the original characters in the same situation as in the original. Events are happening somewhere between the first and the second games.</p>
<p>Maria Mallory, the Ultimate Misfortune, wakes up in the hospital with her fellow classmates. And then a plush toy appears and tells them to kill each other. What?!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Danganronpa - Welcome to the Despair Hospital!

**Author's Note:**

> Doing this just for fun, in hopes that I’ll actually finish it.

A huge building stood in the middle of the city, towering over the rest of the houses as something unreachable, just like a dream. Yes, it was a dream itself embodied into a building. Hope’s Peak Private Academy, The Western Facility. 

The place which students are guaranteed to success in life. Every teenager hopes to one day become this academy’s student and fulfill their dreams… There are no exams, only chance to enroll there is to have the humanity’s rarest ability known as…

a talent.

Well, you see… the one of the academy’s purpose is a researching the subject of talent. What is it? Who gets it, who doesn’t? Why? How?   
The academy’s goal is to raise the “hope” of the nation… no, the “hope” of the whole world, since they opened the foreign facilities to search for talents all over the planet.

(“Hope”, huh?)

"Hope" - the most talented graduates of the academy who will take the world on their shoulders and bring it to its glory…  
That’s why the academy takes in only high school students who are the best of the best in their field of activity. And I was “lucky” enough to have a talent. One of a kind, even!

(From now on, I’m going to study in such a magnificent place…)

I stood in front of the entrance of Hope’s Peak Academy. And a dark feeling loomed in my soul.

(This isn’t going to end good. No way! Nu-huh! No, sir! No, m’am! No way it’ll be okay! I’m sure of it!)

I gasped, trembling. All my might went to preventing me from escaping. It was a deal, I reminded myself. Now there’s no choice but to be obedient and go to this school.

(I want to go home and get under my blanked in my room…)

**???** :”Calm down. Everything is gonna be fine, I’ll make it sure.”

I turned to the girl who stood beside me. Her black skin beautifully contrasted with her big and wavy yellow hair. She reminded me of a dandelions.  
Her name is Cherish Howard, the Ultimate Caretaker. I agreed to become academy’s student only if she’ll take care of me.

I whined a little, shivering from bad feeling in my stomach. This feeling didn’t get away even when Cherish spoke to me.  
She took my hands into hers and said softly. 

**Cherish** :”Look at me. C’mon, Maria, just look into my eyes.”

I did what she said. I looked into her golden eyes. She smiled and calmly said

**Cherish** :”Believe in me, believe in my talent. I’ll take care of everything that may harm you in any way.”

And now I believed in her words. Seeing a firm confidence in her expression, feeling a warm and soft skin, and hearing her voice made me to get hold of myself. Bad feeling was still deep in my guts, but now I could control it.   
Cherish’s natural talent was her calm and reassuring aura. In addition to her thoughtfulness, responsibility, and patience, it made her the best person who could take care of anyone in the world. 

The best kind of person I could meet, because…

**Cherish** :”Now, let’s go.”

I nodded. Cherish squeezed my hand and lead me into the Academy.

My name is Maria Mallory, the Ultimate Misfortune.

It was my last memory before everything turned dark.

…

I woke up in a weird place. Everything was so white and clean, almost sterile. I was lying on a weird bed, under weird blankets covering my weird body.  
It was heavy. So heavy, I couldn’t believe that it was my own body. I tried to stand up but the wave of nausea put me back down. Just a little movement exploded in my head with thousands of fireworks, crackling under my skull. 

I panted like a fish on the land. I could feel the sweat sliding down my skin and soaking the bed sheet.

Gradually I stopped seeing fireworks, and the pain became dull and pulsing.   
I made my body roll off the bed and went through the door near my bed, in hopes that it was a bathroom.

(Thanks God it's a bathroom…)

I bent over the toiled bowl, and violent spasms shook my body. They contunued for a while, and in the end I was exhausted as if I coughed up my own guts even though only thing I spitted were stomach juices. But yet, my mind seemed to be cleared up.   
I pressed my forehead to the toilet and allowed myself to stay like this for few minutes. Cold ceramic surface smelling of sanitizers was just what I needed to collect myself from the pieces.

(One thing at once… I just need to do one thing at once… it’s easy… come on…) 

I flushed the toilet. 

I stood up on my shaky legs.

I went to the sink.

I turned on the cold water.

I washed my face.

I looked up into the mirror…

**Maria** :”Huh?”

(Wha- What’s wrong with my eye?)

I saw a red dot in the center of my left eye. I didn’t feel anything weird in it, it just glowed in red. So unnerving… 

(Why is my hair undone?) 

And what was I wearing?

**Maria** :”A hospital gown?…”

The place where I woke up indeed looked like a hospital room. Maybe I got into an accident again and was hospitalized.   
I tried to remember what happened after I entered into Hope’s Peak Academy with Cherish. But the headache, that I thought calmed down, returned with more power.

**Maria** :"Aggh…"

Maybe I hit my head. That would explain my memory loss and a terrible headache…

**???:** ”Aaaah…Aaaaaah…Aaaaaaah!.. Mic check. Mic check.”

A weird voice spoke up from the speakers, painfully echoing inside my head. 

**???** :”Good morning, students of Hope’s Peak Academy! Your headmaster is speaking. Please gather at the treatment room.  
 **???** :”I repeat. Gather at the treatment room, you bastards!”

What’s with the sudden shift of the tone?   
As it looks, I was indeed in the hospital. And according to the speaker I wasn’t alone!

**Maria** :”I should find my clothes before heading to the treatment room…”

The only things I wore were the hospital gown and a thin plastic bracelet on my right arm. It would be troublesome to show up to the meeting like this. And since my headache calmed down a little I could examine the room more carefully. 

There was a wardrobe, fixed into a wall. But it was empty.   
In front of the wardrobe there was a surveillance camera hanging from the ceiling. Well, it’s not that unusual in the hospitals I guess. I shrugged and looked around.  
There were no windows in the room, only a door and a vent-hole on the ceiling. Maybe that’s why it was so quiet here? It was so quiet, I could hear my own pulse…

I started tapping my leg only to make some noise.

(Calm down, man… Everything is alright…) 

There was a big plastic box on the table. I nudged it with my finger, ready to run. But nothing happened.  
Finally, I dared to open the box’s lid and peek inside. There were all my belongings - from the headband to the panties!

After I had changed, I examined the door. It was a pretty usual-looking gray door, made of something metallic and with a diamond-shaped doorknob. Nothing was wrong with the door hinges either - the door totally won’t fall and crush me beneath itself.   
The lock was more interesting, a very high-tech looking. No key hole, no card slot, only something like a barcode scanner.  
I carefully reached the doorknob and slowly tried to turn it.

Nothing. The doorknob didn’t even fudge. 

There wasn’t anything in the room that could be a key. The room was sterile clean and totally empty. What could be used with a barcode scanner then?..  
I looked down at my new bracelet. It had no visible seams and the only way to take it off was to cut off my arm. I brought it near the scanner. It beeped and made an unlocking sound.

It worked!

After slowly opening the door, afraid that everything will fall apart at any moment, I dared to peek outside…

**???** :"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEEEEH!"  
 **Maria** :”Aaaaaaaaaargh!”

A girl in a black jacket screeched right into my face.  
In surprise I tried to slam the door. Tried. But, oh too bad, my fingers were on the way. I screamed again.

**Maria** :”Aagh!”

The weird girl who scared the shit out of me looked inside.

**???** :"Oh my god! I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! Are you okay?"  
 **Maria** :”I’ll live…”

I thought that I should thank my mom for making me gloves with a quite sturdy material - no bone was crushed today! The girl entered the room and helped me to stand up. She looked worried.

**Sonia** :”I’m sorry… I just woke up in this place, I didn’t know where I am and you opened the door so suddenly I thought you were a ghost… I’m Sonia by the way. Sonia Buonarotti, the Ultimate Driver.”

So, she’s one of the students!

**Maria** :”I’m Maria Mallory… And I’m fine, no big deal, I get something like this all the time. So stop apologizing.”

I wasn’t really sure why I didn’t want to tell her my “talent”. Maybe because I looked at Sonia’s eyes and realized only now, these guys were real! Real people in flesh and bone, awesome people with awesome talents!

How could someone like me dare to fit in?..

**Sonia** :"You were going to go to the treatment room?"  
 **Maria** :”So you’ve heard this announcement too?”  
 **Sonia** :”Yeah… It was so creepy, I was kinda scared to go, you know.”

But then she smiled.

**Sonia** :”But now I’m with you! It’s not that scary anymore.”  
 **Maria** :”Well, glad to hear…”

Sonia smiled again and tried to open the door. 

**Sonia** :”Huh?”

She shaked the doorknob.

**Maria** :”What’s wrong?”  
 **Sonia** :”It doesn’t open!.. Ah, right!”

And she brought her right wrist to the barcode scanner. The same plastic bracelet as mine came into sight when Sonia rolled up her sleeve.

**Sonia** :”I almost hurt my brain figuring this out, haha…”

But the lock beeped as if Sonia made a mistake. She hastily tried the doorknob again, but it didn’t fudge at all.

**Sonia** :”Whaaaaat? Whyyyy?”

Sonia froze in front of the door. She looked as if she’ll break apart really soon - the panic and sheer fear showed on her face.

(If I won’t do anything this can end badly…)

The thoughts raced in my brain. She did the same thing as me. She had the same bracelet too! So, why didn’t the door open?..

(Could it be?..)

I showed the scanner my bracelet and it beeped approvingly.

**Sonia** :"Ooooh!"

Sonia turned the doorknob without any problems.

**Sonia** :"Ooooh! What did you do?"  
 **Maria** :”I just thought… I think it’s linked to us… I mean we can open only our rooms.”  
 **Sonia** :”Did you know that?”  
 **Maria** :"Not really…"  
 **Sonia** :”You’re so smart! Not a surprise that you’re Hope’s Peak’s student!”  
 **Maria** :”Yeah… I guess…”

When we went out the room, Sonia pointed to the left.

**Sonia** :”We should go this way. It seems, that we have only this hallway, and that way…”

She pointed to the right.

**Sonia** :"…there are only hospital rooms. My room is the last one to the right."  
 **Maria** :”I see…”

We walked down the hallway in silence. Sonia’s smile wilted down gradually. She didn’t talk much, maybe because she didn’t know what to say. I was fine with this, because I couldn’t find anything to talk about either. Soon enough counting my steps and observing surroundings took all my attention.

(… nineteen, twenty, twenty one… is this cafeteria?.. nothing dangerous in sight… windows… it’s bright outside, maybe I was out only for few minutes?.. twenty four… “WC”… twenty nine… “Kitchen”… Are we going to cook ourselves? I hope not…)

**Sonia** :”Umm… You’re so calm, Maria…”

I turned to her. She hugged herself and trembled a little.

**Maria** :”Huh?.. Yeah, I guess…”  
 **Sonia** :"Aren’t you worried that you woke up in the hospital?.."  
 **Maria** :”Not really. It happened before many times, so… uh, I’m used to it?”  
 **Sonia** :"What? It’s such a sad thing to say…"  
 **Maria** :”I don’t know… This kind of thing always happens when I try to go outside.”  
 **Sonia** :"I see. Umm…"

Sonia looked around, trying to find a subject to talk about.

**Sonia** :"So… Can I ask what happened this time?"  
 **Maria** :”I don’t know. The last thing I remember is that I’m entering the academy.”  
 **Sonia** :”Huh?”  
 **Maria** :”What?”  
 **Sonia** :”M-me too! I mean… I came here in the first day of semester, I entered the academy… and then, before I knew it, I was here…”

(Well, this is unsettling…)

That dark cold feeling returned to me as a cold sweat running down my back. 

(Where are doctors and nurses?..)

The corridor was squeaky clean empty, the same as my room, and as quiet as a graveyard. The white walls and ceiling suddenly became so heavy, I could feel how they’re pressing me from every side. 

**Maria** :”I-it must be a coincidence!… It must be…”

Even I couldn’t believe myself, shaking and stuttering like this, but I tried to smile at Sonia. She tried to smile back, even while looking pale and sick. I wondered if my face was the same as hers.

**Sonia** :”R-right! It’s just a coincidence!..”

Then we finally reached the end of the hallway with big red doors on the wall. They didn’t open and I read the text… 

**Maria** :"Courtroom? What the hell?"  
 **Sonia** :”There are another doors in the entryway…”

We turned left. The stairs were shut down with iron bars.

**Maria** :”What the hell?!”

(This is bad, this is bad, bad, bad, bad bad bad…)

**Sonia** :”What… what do we do?…”

(How should I know?!)

But I only nodded toward the room.

**Maria** :”E-enter the room?..”  
 **Sonia** :”Y-yeah…”

The nameplate on the wall stated that this is the treatment room. Many worried voices came out from it. They sounded young, maybe the same age as me and Sonia.  
Sonia carefully opened the doors. They didn’t make any sound but everyone in the room turned to look at us when we walked inside. We froze under the gazes of thirteen teenagers.

**Maria** :"Uh… Hi?"

Suddenly a familiar girl jumped out of the crowd. She took my hands into hers.

**Cherish** :"Maria! You’re here too?!"  
 **Maria** :"Cherish? What do you mean "too"? Didn’t you wait for me to wake up? I guessed I got into an accident or something…"

But Cherish shook her head.

**Cherish** :”I… I woke up here.”

She gulped hard. I noticed her heavy breathing and slightly wet palms.

**Cherish** :"W-we all woke up in the hospital rooms…"  
 **Maria** :”You all?..”

Cherish looked at others. One of the girls - the tall one with freckles - stepped forward.

**Serious girl with freckles** :”And we’re all Hope Peak’s Academy’s students, or so it seems. Say, you two, haven’t you met one more person in the way here?”  
 **Sonia** :”No… The hallway was empty. Why do you ask?”  
 **Serious girl with freckles** :”We’ve decided to wait for everyone to gather, and only then discuss our current situation. We’ve also counted the number of rooms, according to it there must be sixteen people - only one person left.”

One of the guys, lounging on the couch, raised his voice.

**Short boy on the couch** :”What if one of the rooms is empty though?”  
 **Serious girl with freckles** :”I am inclined to believe that there shouldn’t be an accident like this.”  
 **Cute pink-haired girl** :”Why? What do you mean?”  
 **The boy with a pompadour** :”Everyone in this room, I repeat, everyone here woke up in similar circumstances, there’s nobody else in here, the place is full of surveillance cameras, the only visible exit is closed - everything looks like someone’s setup.”  
 **Punk(?) Girl** :”Aaaah, stop talking about scary shit just because of one minor detail! Who started this conversation?”  
 **Short boy on the couch** :"Whoa-whoa-whoa! Don’t look at me like that! I just wanted to stop dicking around and move forward already! What if everything is alright and you guys are just being paranoid? Seriously!"  
 **Punk(?) Girl** :”Shuddup! You’re not helping with your comments, so shuddup already!”  
 **Serious girl with freckles** :”We decided to wait, so we will wait. No use to be so impatient, now. Let’s calm down.”  
 **Tall red-headed girl** :”I’m sure we’re just being nervous. If only this smell wasn’t here…”  
 **Big boy** :”Smell? What smell?”  
 **Cute pink-haired girl** :”Ah, when you said it… it indeed stinks here…”

With every word my soul sinked down the black hole inside of me. Everything indeed was wrong. What is this place? How did we get here? Why we were brought here?  
Cherish still held my hands, so tightly it almost hurt. Sonia stood in a corner, paler than ever, not joining the conversation. And the other kids contunued arguing over meaningless thing, as if they were just glad to distract themselves from the reality…

Then the fast sharp sounds of feet rang out in the hallway and the last person flew into the room. Doors banged against the wall, everyone turned to see what happened.

A tall and lanky boy stood In the doorway, breathing heavily. Everyone stared at him, he stared at us in return. Everyone’s attention was caught by the boy’s clothes, or, should I say the lack of it. The only thing that was on his skinny shoulders was a hospital gown. The boy’s face slowly turned as red as his hair.  
image

**Red-haired boy** :"Why am I the only one who didn’t find his clothes?!"  
 **Short boy on the couch** :”Spoiler alert, they’re in the box on the table.”

But the red-haired boy already disappeared in the hallway. There was a sound of running feet, which gradually subsided in the distance.

 

**Short boy on the couch** :”Pfff….”  
 **Short boy on the couch** :”Hahahaha, oh my god!”  
 **Tall blond boy** :”To think that someone could run here in the hospital gown…”  
 **Big boy** :”He didn’t forget his sneakers thought.”

This little accident seemed to cheer everyone up. Even the previous serious girl giggled about it under her palm.

(I might have seen what I shouldn’t have seen though…)

When the red-haired boy ran back, fully clothed and still red as a tomato, our meeting finally started.

**Serious girl with freckles** :”Now, as we’re all here, we should start a discussion of our current circumstances. But first, proper introductions are required, even if some of might have heard about each other. I’ll start”

She bowed. She wore a simple white shirt with a strict long skirt. Her hair was tied with a big ribbon.

**Katherine** :”My name is Katherine Ray. The Ultimate Negotiator. My favorite color is dark gray; my favorite meal is fried rice with vegetables; I’m aspiring to become the world’s most famous diplomat, who speaks on behalf of love and peace. Next, please.”

The big boy - he was as tall as wide - flinched. He nervously trembled his tiny red bow-tie.

**Roy** :”Hi! I’m Roy Logan. I’m the Ultimate Carpenter… Uuh, do I have to go into details like you?..”  
 **Katherine** :”No. It’s not required.”  
 **Roy** :”Oh, thanks goodness. I’m not that interesting person, really…”

He was interrupted by a boy on the couch.

**Ivan** :”Then next’s me, huh? I’m Ivan. Ivan Gunn.”

He was short, wore a cowboy clothes and had a black messy hair.

**Roy** :”I didn’t even finish speaking…”  
 **Ivan** :”I’m the Ultimate Shooter. Gimme guns! Any guns - big or small - and I’ll handle them! I love spicy food and I’m still single.”

(How does food connect with being single?..)

Red-haired boy turned a little bit pale after Ivan’s introduction.

**Cherish** :”My name is Cherish Howard. I’m the Ultimate Caretaker. Um, I don’t know what to say. I’m pretty much an average girl.”  
 **Katherine** :”You seem to know that girl. You can speak about it.”

She pointed at me.

**Cherish** :”Yes. We've become acquainted before the school, because I’m taking care of her.”  
Katherine:”Taking care?..”  
Cherish:”Because of her… condition, yes. I don’t think I have any right to talk about it.”  
Katherine:”Of course, my apologies.”

After that a girl with glasses stepped forward. I noticed an apron worn sideways.

**Anastasia** :”Hi-hi! I’m Anastasia Innocenti! I like trinketing with jewels, so I became the Ultimate Jeweler. I dislike cold weather and like sweet tea. Nice to meet you!”

She gave us a little bow. Right after her introduction the tall red-haired boy jumped, seeking for attention.

**Noah** :”Aaaagh! Next is me! Me! I should have been the first, man! And you all talked so much, I couldn’t even insert a single word!”  
 **Katherine** :”Please stop your rambling and get to the business.”  
 **Noah** :”Fine, fine. Anyway, I’m the best of the best in running, the Ultimate Runner - Noah Lloyd! That’s me!”

After he shut up to take a breath, the cute pink-haired girl waved her hand.

**Olga** :”Okay, okay. Next is me.”  
 **Noah** :”Hey, I didn’t finish!”  
 **Olga** :”You took lots of time already, so let others speak. I’m Olga Maddox. Your good old Ultimate Luckster!”  
 **Roy** :”Whoah, never thought I’d see one!”  
 **Ivan** :”Of course you’d see one! There’s one lucky student every year.”  
 **Roy** :”Well, yeah, but…”  
 **Olga** :”He he he~ I knew I could become Academy’s student one day. I had this luck since I was born.”

She giggled. Then a familiar voice spoke behind me.

**Sonia** :”I’m next, I guess? My name is Sonia Buonarotti. I’m the Ultimate Driver. Uh, what else?..”  
 **Noah** :”Huh? You’re still a highschooler, right?”  
 **Sonia** :”Yeah, so what?”  
 **Noah** :”How come you’re the driver? Aren’t you too young for having a driving license?”  
 **Sonia** :”Hey-hey-hey, smart guy, do you wanna fight?”  
 **Noah** :”Whoah, what did I say?”  
 **Sonia** :”No one can talk bad about my talent and walk away unharmed!”  
 **Noah** :”I didn’t mean to!..”

The punk-looking girl butted in between them.

**Cicilia** :”Hey, sister, if you wanna help, this Cicilia can lend a hand or two.”

Sonia still looked furious but she shook her head.

**Sonia** :”Thanks. But no need - I’ll take care of him later. Myself.”  
 **Cicilia** :”I see, I see. Well then, y’all! Hear this one’s name and don’t forget! I’m Cicilia Grace, the Ultimate Tattoo Artist at your service!”  
 **Noah** :”Wait a minute, how are you a tattoo artist if you’re…”

Fortunately, he didn’t finish his sentense, because someone kicked him into his leg. This someone was that boy with a pompadour. I noticed that his elegant gray suit looked awesone on his dark skin, and it was surprising to see an ordinary red t-shirt under it.

**Ralph** :”I’d advise you to shut the hell up, or else you’ll get your second mortal enemy. And my advises are always better to follow, since I’m the Ultimate Lawyer. Ralph Hope is my name. And anticipating you question, I studied Law since elementary school.”  
 **Noah** :”Oh… Okay…”

Ralph bowed to a tall blond boy standing next to him. The blond boy bowed back in theatrical manner.

**James** :”Then, we’re next? I’m James Livinsky.”

He took tall red-haired girl's hand. Together they looked like a couple of giants, towering over our heads.

**Beth** :”And I’m Beth Goodwill!”  
 **James and Beth** :"We’re a couple!"  
 **James** :”I’m the Ultimate Designer.”  
 **Beth** :”I’m the Ultimate Doctor. The general practitioner. But I planned to become a surgeon after I graduate.”  
 **James** :”And I’ll support you in any way possible.”  
 **Beth** :"Ah, James~"

These two became sickly sacharine really quick.  
Next to them stood a boy in ordinary t-shirt and shorts. He scratched his ear, unsure what to do.

**George** :”I’m the Ultimate Teamplayer, George Livinsky…”  
 **Ralph** :”Livinsky?”  
 **George** :”Yeah, about that… Me and James are…”

The air dropped some degrees in temperature, shivers ran down my spine. I turned to James, whom accumulated that ice cold aura, and trembled even more. His sweet loving smile didn’t disappear at all, but it was full of malicious intent.

(What a creepy guy…)

George seemed to feel this danger as well. He stuttered a little, and contunued.

**George** :”…We’re related, yeah. Like, some distance relatives. Yeah.”  
 **Ralph** :”I see…”  
 **Katherine** :”Could you please elaborate your talent? I’ve seen others’ names in news, but not yours…”  
 **George** :”I’m a sportsman. My abilities are average, but I can play all sports games. Though, my talent is to bring players together as a team.”  
 **Beth** :”Ah, people really like him, right, James?”  
 **James** :”Yeah, sure.”  
 **Katherine** :”Understood. Now, who’s next?”

I looked around the room at the people who gathered here. I don’t want to have speeches. I don’t want any introductions. I hope I’m not the next person in line…  
Katherine's eyes saw me. I tried to look away as if it’ll help me, ha ha ha… Unfortunately it seemed to attract Katherine’s attention even more.

**Katherine** :”You there! Maria, was it? You’re next!”  
 **Maria** :”Umm, m-may I introduce myself last?..”  
 **Katherine** :”Sorry, but no exeptions here. Everyone here are equal, your avoidance won’t be permitted.”

(But I’m totally not equal to such awesome people like you!)

I turned to Cherish seeking for help.

**Cherish** :”Uh. You’ll introduce yourself anyway, isn’t it better if you’ll do it now and finish it faster?”

Everyone were watching me. I just couldn’t make them wait.

**Maria** :"I guess?.."

I inhaled some air before speaking…

**Maria** :”…”

First words didn’t come even after a while. I just stood there, trembling.

**Maria** :”…”

Everyone looked at me.

**Maria** :”…!”

Everyone waited for my words…

**Maria** :”…!”

Everyone looked annoyed and impatient!

**Maria** :”…!!”

Come on! Come on! Just a word! You know what to say! Why are you not speaking?

**Maria** :”M-m-m-m-m-mm-m-m…”

I started suffocating, trying to thrust some air through clenched throat to make a sound. My mouth was shut as if it was sealed. My lips trembled, but didn’t open.

**Maria** :”M-m-m-m-m-m-m-mmm!”

Cherish stepped forward, hiding me from piercing gazes. I felt much better this way…

**Cherish** :”Her name is Maria Mallory. 15 years old. Blood type AB. Likes to draw and read. Favorite genre is fantasy.”

I was glad, someone spoke up instead of me. I was angry, I couldn’t say a word.

(What an useless trash I am…)

**Noah** :”Huh? She was speaking alright just now…”

Someone kicked him again.

**Katherine** :”My apologies… I made you to speak when you didn’t want…”  
 **Maria** :”No-no-no! It’s me who’s sorry. I’m s-sorry, I took so much time…”

Cherish stood in front of me, protecting from the world. Only this tiny thought gave me some strength.

**Maria** :”M-my name is M-Maria M-M-Mallory. I’m the Ultimate… M-misfortune.”

Everyone gasped and turned silent for a while.

**Olga** :”Huuuh? Isn’t it opposite of my talent?”  
 **Noah** :”Well… that’s unfortunate…”  
 **Ivan** :”Pfft! Hahah! You said it!”  
 **Noah** :”What did I say?!”  
 **Roy** :”But it’s kinda true…”  
 **Beth** :”Poor thing…”  
 **George** :”How is this can be a talent?”

I stopped listening when their voices merged into one big noise. Let them talk about what they want, I thought.   
I did it! I introduced myself!

**Cherish** :”Can we just move on already?”  
 **Katherine** :”Silence! Everyone shut up, there are still people left.”

Everyone looked at the messy looking boy. He wore an oversized suit and a sports pants.

**Barry** :”Oh, I didn’t want to introduce myself at all, but after this it would be unfair, huh? My name is Barry Works and I’m the Ultimate Engineer. The electrical kind - I mostly work with computers. Hardware design, PDAs design, supercomputers… I know other stuff, but not as good as my own field… Oh, yeah, and nice to meet you.”

He scratched his head, messing his messy hair even more, and nodded, not speaking to anyone in particular.

**Eric** :”E-eric Dawn… the Ultimate Genius… glad to make acquaintance w-with you.”

A little boy, who looked much younger than us stepped forward and gave us a little bow. He was… 12 years old?

**Eric** :”I-I’m 13 years old! I’m not a kid anymore! Okay? I’m a teenager, just like you all!”

As if he read my mind, he spat out the words in a great haste. His tiny body trembled, while he clenched his fists.

**Olga** :”Holy shit, boy, chill down, would you? As if anyone here cares about it.”

Eric turned all red and lowered his eyes. It seems that he realized how desperate it looked from the side. His nose started to run.  
I looked at this scene with a growing panic. I looked at Katherine in hopes that she’ll know what to do, being the Ultimate Negotiator, but Katherine looked even worse than me. She froze, turned pale, and frantically searched for solutions, not daring to look right at the crying boy.

To our relief, Beth started talking to Eric.

**Beth** :”I-I’d like you to explain your talent, please.”  
 **Eric** :”Oh it’s nothing. It’s not that great.”

He sniffled and hastily wiped his eyes with his sleeve. But however much he tried he couldn’t stop the tears.

**Eric** :”I just skipped many grades since I started school. I’m not that smart, I just study fast.”  
 **Beth** :”That’s a great talent, Eric. Studying is a hard work too, you know?”

Beth patted his back, Eric looked at her as if she was mocking him. But sweet smile on her face looked so geniune, Eric smiled back.

**Eric** :”B-but…”  
 **Beth** :”You did good. Don’t worry about it much. Okay?”

Eric nodded with sparkling eyes.

**???** :”What a touching scene!”

Suddenly that weird voice we’ve heard earlier spoke up through speakers.

**???** :”I’ll cry my eyes out, it’s so toooouching! Boo-hoo! It’s not the time to get touchy-feely, you bastards!”  
 **Cicilia** :”Well, if someone hasn’t kept us waiting for so long…”  
 **???** :”Oh, now it’s my fault? You’re good at shifting blame at others, muscles for brains. I like you, you’ll do good!”  
 **Sonia** :”What does it have to do with anything?”  
 **Ivan** :”She’s right tho. You kept us waiting even since you gathered us here. I don’t think you have any rights to complain here.”  
 **Olga** :”Yeah! Who the hell are you anyway?!”  
 **Cicilia** :”Seriously, stop talking through speakers, you coward! Show yourself”  
 **Katherine** :”Calm down! We won’t get anywhere insulting each other.”  
 **???** :”Aaah, right. We haven’t met yet, haven’t we? I keep getting ahead of myself…”

The weird cheerful voice relocated behind a big table standing in the end of the room. All our eyes turned that way, only to see the weirdest thing in our lives. A big black and white bird plushie toy jumped on the table's surface, made of dark red wood. 

**Noah** :”Aaaah! Something weird appeared!”  
 **Olga** :”It’s a bird.”  
 **Eric** :”It’s a cockatiel, to be precise.”  
 **Sonia** :”No-no-no, that’s not the point!”  
 **Roy** :”Still, a toy bird?”

(Just what on Earth?..)

Everyone didn’t dare to move and just stared at it. And then it spoke…

**Monobird** :”Aaaah, hhmmm, let’s see… My name is Monobird. And I’m a headmaster of wester facility of Hope Peak’s Academy…”

We just stood there with mouth wide open. Nobody could find words in response to this absurd situation.

**Barry** :”Bullshit.”

Nobody but Barry. He spoke the first time since his introduction and some faint trail of rage maked me look his way. He looked almost indifferent to his surroundings before, now he glared at Monobird as a bird of prey - eyes as if shoot lasers from under a great frown, lips tightly closed.

But Monobird didn’t notice or didn’t care.

**Monobird** :”…And I’m also the director of this hospital.”  
 **Ralph** :”So, we’re indeed in the hospital… Why are the doors closed? Where is the staff? Did you warned our families?..”  
 **Monobird** :”Hold your horses, you annoying brat! I was going to say this part already!”  
 **Ralph** :”B-brat?..”

Monobird coughed a few times as if clearing his throat, which is bullshit.

**Monobird** :”Yes yes, the door, the staff, your families… Well, how to put it? You guys are all gonna die!”  
 **Anastasia** :”What?!”  
 **Olga** :”What did you say?”  
 **Cherish** :”Aaaah!”  
 **Katherine** :”Explain yourself!”

**Monobird** :”I was going to! Stop interrrrupting me! Ahem, you’re all deadly ill. This illness is highly contagious, that’s why we’ve put you into a quarantine.”

**Beth** :”We’re ill? I don’t feel any abnormalities though… What are the symptoms?”  
 **Monobird** :”Eh, you’ll just drop dead suddenly at some point. It’s not important.”  
 **Beth** :”Not… important?”  
 **Monobird** :”Because we have a medicine!”

Almost everyone exhaled with relief. So, we’re safe, everyone’s faces lit up with this thought.

**Ivan** :”Why didn’t you say so earlier?!”  
 **Monobird** :”Because we have medicine only for one of you.”

Our hopes popped like a balloon.  
Beth screamed in anger.

**Beth** :”But why?! If there’s a medicine, there must be a way to multiply it!”  
 **Monobird** :”Eh, we don’t have resources to do it, or something. Think out your own excuse, use your head!”  
 **Beth** :”Excuse?..”

Every word was like a nail into our coffin. With every word a weird sensation arose in our hearts.

We’re ill. We’re dying. We’re not gonna be saved.

Is this a panic?… No… We’re not losing our heads, we’re just facing something dreadful, something that will effect our lives…  
I couldn’t find a word for this sensation. I looked around. Some of them were dread serious. Some of them smiled dazedly, not believing that it’s real. “That’s all a joke, right?” they wanted to ask, but feared to get an answer.

It was real. With a luck like mine, I’m used to it. All the worst thing you can think of always gets real in my case.

Now, I need to do as usual. I need to think…

(What do we do? What do we do? What do we do?!…)

**Maria** :”What… do we do?”  
 **Monobird** :”An exellent question!”

Monobird waved his wings and a giant slot machine dropped from the ceiling right behind the table.

**Monobird** :”Ta-daaaah!”

The slot machine beeped and lit up. It had a giant red button and a giant slot for prizes that were in giant packages. Above the button, almost invisible because of the size difference, was a familiar barcode scanner.

**Monobird** :”Use your bracelets to get a chance to win! Only one try per person thought - that’s why here’s 16 various items that can be used as weapons. I tried to make it as fun as possible!”

Anastasia looked worried.

**Anastasia** :”W-weapons? What for?”  
 **Monobird** :”Why, to kill each other of course!”

Everyone in the room jumped back from the table and the slot-machine. Blood drained from their faces and they all screamed in the same time.

**Ivan** :”What the fuck?!”  
 **Ralph** :”This is a crime! You’re a criminal if you’re asking us to do this!”  
 **Roy** :”I-I don’t believe you! It must be a joke!”  
 **Cicilia** :”Yeah! Man, stop joking around and face us in flesh and bone, stop hiding behind this toy!”  
 **James** :”Let us out! Now!”

Something was wrong. Despite of so many protesting teenagers, who were getting more and more angry, Monobird looked calm and didn’t move even an inch.

As if…

**Monobird** :”Man, you’re all so annoying…”

He flapped is wings again and something fell down the ceiling again. The faint stench that was in the background all this time suddenly worsened. A deep thick odor of a rotten flesh and excrements engulfed us like a wet blanket, suffocating all the anger inside us.

We looked in silent astonishment at remains of adult men and women in white coats.

(The staff…)

Teeny tiny patch of my mind still managed to think straight, while the other parts of it screamed and paniced like a trapped animal.

Run! Run away, far far away!

Hide!

Run and hide! So nobody will find me!

My mind screamed and screamed. It couldn’t stop, it didn’t has vocal cords to strand.

Monobird:”HYAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Monobird laughed obscenely. Nobody answered him.

**Monobird** :”That’s better! Now listen to me, you bastards! You will live here until you all die or until someone kills their classmate! Understood? We have only one medicine, so only one can survive - why not make you to make this decision by yourselves?"

(I don't understand what he's saying...)

Everything slowed down like in movies. Everything was so surreal... I just couldn't wrap my mind around it.

**Monobird** :"But! Here’s one condition though, listen carefully. The killer - the one who blackened with the blood of their comrades - will have to fool survived ones in a court session. Survivors will try to find out who betrayed them, if they won’t do it they’ll all die and the murderer will be free. If survivors will find the murderer, however, the murderer will be the one who’s executed.”

We all listened Monobird in silence. Nobody dared to say anything - the corpses in front of us were like a warning sign. We stood there until Monobird told us to go to our rooms.  
We did so. Still in silence.

(There’s nothing we can say to each other…)

Every one of us was realizing the truth at that moment. We’re all trapped and doomed to die.

The same sick sensation came back to me.

But now I knew the word that described it…

Despair.


End file.
